Interview With A Queenrider(Lazsreen)

[thedreamerlady]

Jenafa's office looked much as it always did. There was a cactus plant from one of her more foolish admirers perked on the left side of the desk. There were hides scattered on the desk, and a small dish of jerky sat in wait for her little Green Flitt Cesta to come and dive-bomb the food. The Green was currently sitting on Jen's shoulder, tail wrapped securely around Jen's neck, but the dark black woman paid the little Flitt no mind.

She was dressed simply, with a blue wrap-a-round dress and several fine bracelets, including the newest one from J'var. Her hair was carefully plaited into two large braids, and tied with yellow ties.

The woman was currently tapping her fingers, awaiting a potential candidate for her Saharth's Queen egg. The chits had to be interviewed of course. It wouldn't do for a stupid girl, or one ignorant of everything but herself to Impress a Queen of Igen.

This one wasn't quite late, but Jen wouldn't admit that. Her door was open, and it would be good to see how easily the girl got flustered. As soon as this: Jen glanced down at the piece of hide with the girl's names on it, Lazsreen arrived.

[hrsegrl]

The summons to the Junior Weyrwoman's weyr was unexpected. Laszreen had never been told the Weyrwomen conducted interviews for Gold Candidates. Though she wouldn't complain about it, she wasn't sure she was prepared enough to meet with Jenafa. The small brunette walked steadily through the corridors until she made it to Jenafa's weyr. Laszreen was never late for anything and today she happened to be a couple minutes ahead of schedule. Hopefully, the Goldrider wouldn't recognize her from the clutching.

When she went to the doorway she realized the door was already open. Somehow she wished she were dressed in her more fine gowns from when she was at home. For this meeting she wore what most the women who worked at the Weyr wore, a simple dress with a tannish colored fabric. Laszreen found it irritated her skin a lot of the time. Things like that took getting used to for the pampered, Bitran.

"Greetings Junior Weyrwoman Jenafa. How fares your wondrous Saharth?" The young woman was looking up at the much taller and darker Jenafa. She felt even smaller in this woman's presence than she normally did, so she put these thoughts aside. Laszreen convinced herself that her height would be the last thing on the Goldrider's mind. These meetings wouldn't be held simply for the look factor. Personality must be examined. It was probably hard to tell who would best be suited for the Gold egg. "I was sent for. My name is Laszreen." She held out her hand to shake Jenafa's. Her eyes met the Goldrider's in a political and professional way.

[thedreamerlady]

Jenafa shook the proffered arm with little expression, studying the girl. Short, long brown hair, exceptionally pretty. She fit the basic Gold Candidate look in every way other than height. That could cause trouble. The girl would need to be exceptional in other ways to make up for her lack of size: though she did look muscled.

"Both Saharth and I fare well." Jenafa looked down at the sheet of hide that had basic information on all candidates.

"Lazsreen of Bitra, correct?" Jen rubbed one of her solid bracelets, and she looked over the girl again. There was something about her that placed the Queenrider on edge. Of all Holds, Bitra was well known for being sneaky. It was why her father did his best not to trade with them, no matter what.

"Tell me about yourself."

[hrsegrl]

Laszreen had never been interviewed before but she would be flamed if she wasn't good enough for a Gold dragon. Jenafa was tall, a lot taller than Laszreen realized from afar. There was no denying the Goldrider liked jewelry or lavish living conditions. On that they would both agree at least. She didn't like where she was currently living though that was probably an easy way to keep candidates.

"Yes." She said with a hard worn smile. Noting the look of skepticisim in the woman's eyes, Laszreen guessed at what she must be thinking. Bitra was far from being the most warmly recieved Hold on Pern. For that she had to be better than anyone else who walked through that door today. Laszreen did not fidget or give any physical indication that she was nervous. In fact she didn't feel that nervous. Not as bad as she thought she would at any rate. She looked tup at the woman's brown eyes, revealing nothing of what was going on with her emotions.

"Do you want my life story or the more simple version of how I ended up here, before you?" Laszreen spoke, her sarcastic sense of humor was not going to win her any points with the woman but quite frankly she didn't see that it would make her unable to impress a Gold.

[thedreamerlady]

Jenafa smiled. Sassy Perhaps the day wouldn't be a complete waste.

"If." Jen said slowly. "You were to Impress my Saharth's Golden daughter, we would spend a great deal of time working together. Tell me about the parts of your life that make you who you are."

Jen watched with interest as Cesta crept down her arm, and hopped onto her desk. And then, naturally made a beeline for the dried meat that Jen kept there. Then she refocused on the candidate.

"As such, it's up to you to decide where to begin." And she would be judged on what she said. Jenafa wanted a competent, non crazed, junior to share the work with. It'd be nice to have three Queenriders in Igen.

[hrsegrl]

Who she was? Well that could be made into a long story. Laszreen presonally didn't think any human had an attention span long enough for that. Not even an obviously powerful woman like Jenafa. The brunnette was pleased that the Queenrider didn't seem suprised by her remark at all. Whatever Laszreen said, it needed to hit home.

"I was raised in a Minor Hold in Bitra. My father is cousin to Lord Haydrin and as such we were very well off." To put it mildly. Laszreen moved on to the more important facts. "It was never any secret that my father wanted the Bitran Lordship. My siblings and I were raised as if perfection were not impossible but rather unattainable to those who did not strive for it. He demanded we study everything from politics to dueling. When I was nine my siblings began dying, one by one. Until I was the only child standing. My entire life I thought we were competing to become the best family, I didn't realize we were competing against one another until the moment when I was the only one left. "

No need to mention all the things that had happened. Only that she was betratyed by those closest to her. "Despite my childhood and my parents wishes. I left for a life here with the chance to impress a Gold. I will not turn away from this path" She made it clear that when she wanted something she got it. Laszreen wasn't going to beat around the bush. Her will power to live through what her parents had rested on her from the time she was four till the time she left them at fifteen.

[thedreamerlady]

Jen nodded, and tapped her bracelet again. Well, at least she'd learned something useful about the girl. And it was apparent she wasn't as bad as some of the candidates from her own Clutch. Well then, time to ask different questions.

"Well, then, did you, while this was going on, have time for relationships? And by relationships, I mean sex. And if not then, how about now?" If the brunette wasn't backing off this path, she would have hopefully experienced sex. She wasn't going to allow some prude like Shaye as a Queenrider, not unless she had too. It wasn't good for the dragons.

"And you're a Holder: what are you opinions on purity? Be detailed."

[hrsegrl]

"No relationships of that nature." Laszreen said as if she were perfectly okay with that. "I am a Holder and though I understand Weyr morals they are not yet my own. You see, if for some reason I do not impress, I must go on to a different life where my purity may be important. If I do impress, its easier to give something up if you don't know what it is you are missing. I have only been tempted to have that sort of relationship since coming to the Weyr."

Which was all well and good so long as the Junior didn't ask whom tempted her. That would be a bit of a sticky situation. "I don't think that at the Weyr you have to be pure to have status. In fact with power comes that sort of sexual freedom. Women in Holds and Crafts do not have that and hence their purity is rated higher. In the Weyr I believe that purity is only useful in situations like my own. Where distractions such as sex can hinder you more than help you."

Brutally honest, maybe not. She wasn't out to make anyone look bad. For her right now there would be no sex. Unless the Goldrider was going to give up J'var anytime soon it probably wasn't a good idea for her to be involved with him. Laszreen always knew what she wanted and she was stubborn enough to stick to something once she had decided on it.

[thedreamerlady]

Not good. Jen shook her head seriously.

"You'd best give into that temptation, miss." Serious face, serious voice, serious everything. "If you are committed enough to sleep with someone, you should go back to the Hold." Jen frowned a minute, and then decided to explain.

"As a Weyrling you'll be expected to avoid all close relationships for your dragons sake. As a recently graduated Queenrider, you won't be able to have a fling, and it's unlikely you'll create a Weyrmate before your Queen flies. You should not go into Flight inexperienced. I know several discreet Brownriders if you want to especially sure no one will find out about the change in your purity."

Satisfied with that explanation, she moved onto the next topic she wanted to cover.

"Do you have any idea what being a Queenrider entails?"

[hrsegrl]

The brunette was taken aback by that. What?? She had to sleep with someone to impress a Gold dragon? Jenafa didn't appear to be joking. Laszreen knew that first flights could be difficult but even if she impressed the Gold it wouldn't be like she was Senior Weyrwoman. Who cared if she had flings then?Laszreen maintained a composed face though she was seething inside. "No, that won't be neccesary." She said to the brownrider comment. As if she would sleep with some random dragonrider this close before the Hatching. HAH!

There was no way she was going to be told how to proceed with her own life. Pushing that topic aside, since Jen was moving on to something less bothersome, she wondered if the woman expected all sixteen turn olds to have had sexual relations. Her father would have a heart attack if he heard that.

Being a Goldrider, well that was not so hard to talk about. "I expect its a little like running a Hold with some major differences. A Goldrider is responsible not only for herself and her dragon but for the entire Weyr's well being. While the Weyrleader commands the wings, the Weyrwomen are responsible for everything else. The job requires an understanding of leadership, hardwork and a certain level of intelligence." Not to mention a lack of a social life and less sleep than a normal person. Both of which did not bother her.

[thedreamerlady]

"You can retrieve some tea from the Lower Caverns to keep yourself from pregnancy." Jen would check to make sure Lazsreen retrieve some as well. If she didn't, she'd make sure Lazsreen was stricken from the candidate records. And kept away from the Sands during Impression as well: there would be no Impression from the Stands while she was in charge.

"Do you see yourself as the kind of person who works well with others?" Jen asked carelessly, though she was obviously paying attention. She knew that the girl wasn't much a people person(a little snake from the lower caverns had told her so), but it would be interesting to see how Lazsreen responded.

"And finally, what questions do you have to ask me?" Jenafa wanted questions. Those who didn't have the imagination to form questions were not the people she wanted on a dragon. Well, not on a Gold or Bronze that was. The Greens and Blues could do what they wanted with their minds.

[hrsegrl]

Laszreen nodded and then asked, "Can't you simply go Between to be rid of unwanted pregnancy?" She had heard this from one of the women in the Lower Caverns when she was working. She really didn't know why it had stuck with her. Mayeb she should do both the tea and the Betweening, if she even decided to go through with this. Why was it so necessary?

"I regret to say that my people skills are lacking. I think they find me to be arrogant and aloof and a bit cold." She was honest because Laszreen believed in honesty above all other things. Whether it hurt her interview or not, no good ever came from even a white lie, in her opinion.

"I've heard many things about Goldriders since coming here but I was wondering what makes a dragon want to choose one girl or boy over another? Some people have been telling me its something innate but I always believed in making my own destiny so can it also have something to do with your own ambition?"

[thedreamerlady]

"Between is for ending a pregnancy, the tea is for preventing one from occurring." Jenafa replied serenely. And then nodded approvingly at Lazsreen's next statement. Nothing good came from lying, unless you were certain you could hide the truth. So, at the least the chit wasn't unbearably stupid. Besides, aloof and overbearing could be useful, at least at times. And if she was trained in Hold upkeep(which most holder girls were) then she could help out. As a crafter, Jen had needed to learn a good deal, and since the girl was smart, that would help. She would probably be hard to control, but what Goldrider wasn't.

Jen smiled slowly at Lazsreen's question. And then she waited for a second, adjusting her dress, and pondering how exactly to answer it.

"Dragons are looking for something in their partners. And I would say that in most cases ambition isn't something they are looking for." It was a hint, she supposed. Want the dragon for what it is, not what it will bring you. Jen didn't know if it was the truth, or how much it would help her, but she knew that she hadn't been thinking about being Queenrider once she'd stepped onto the sands. It was much more about receiving a dragon.

And then she'd received Saharth, and couldn't have cared what color she was, as long as she kept her.

"If you don't Impress this time, and one of the other Weyrs sends out a call for female candidates, would you go?" Jen picked up a writing utensil, and looked ready to record whatever Lazsreen said.

[hrsegrl]

That made sense. "So tea before and Between after, just to be doubly sure." Laszreen wouldn't care to miss a Hatching from having a child. She wasn't sure she wanted children. Certainly not at sixteen. The entire subject was making her a bit upset. As long as Jen thought she was going to go through with it thats all that mattered for now. She'd find someone to give her advice later.

"I don't think that ambition is something that I can take out of my character. I'm not saying ambition is the only reason for wanting to impress but why bother if you don't want position and power?" She understood that Golds were individual beings and had their own reasons but they had to have something in common. She was still finding this no ambition portion hard to grasp.

She had not thought that would be an option. Seeing as it was unlikely to happen she admitted, "Yes, I would go." She would leave whoever she knew or even cared about just to have a chance to impress a dragon. She wouldn't take less than what she felt she needed to be happy. An emotion that rarely inhabited her since she was a small child.

[thedreamerlady]

If the girl did Impress, Jenafa decided, she would need to have things explained to her. Igen was, by far, the better Weyr, and other Weyrs were inferior. Not that they didn't need some new blood, just to spice things up, but Lazsreen obviously didn't understand that. It wasn't something that needed to be corrected, not yet, but Jen made sure to make a note of it. In her own shorthand, that would be very hard to decipher by anyone else.

"And yes, that would be the safest way. The Lower Caverns ladies will be better able to explain it." Jen had never needed to worry about it. She'd given birth to the two children she'd conceived.

And as for her hint.

"Lazsreen, picture yourself as a lonely, hungry child. Who are you going to run to: the ambitious, power hungry woman, or the mothering, loving little Holderess. It's all about how you present yourself, as well as the innate things a dragon judges you on."

Jen glanced over at the hourglass that was concealed among the various objects on her desk.

"If you have no further questions, you'll hear about my decision as soon as I'm finished interviewing the lot of candidates." It was a dismissal, unless Lazsreen had something very pressing to add or question.